Clay W. Hammerstein and Stephen L. Bay, both of Insignia/ESG's Downtown office, represented the law firm, which is based in San Francisco. LA-based Maguire Partners, the building's owner, was represented in-house by Pat McRoskey.

Two other big Downtown leases were announced earlier in the week. In the first, Lockton Insurance Brokers signed a 10-year renewal for 47,984 sf at Ernst & Young Plaza, 725 S. Figueroa St. Local brokers tell GlobeSt.com that the deal is worth about $12 million.

In the second transaction, the law firm of Weston, Benshoof, Rochefort signed an 11-year sublease valued at about $15 million for 60,000 sf of office space at 333 S. Hope St. The space was previously rented by BP Amoco, the London-based energy giant that took over LA-based Arco about two years ago and has fired thousands of workers as it digests the merger.

At about 21%, Downtown's office vacancy factor is easily the highest in LA County. But its rents are among the lowest--about 65% of those charged for comparable space on the trendier Westside. Though many tenants were willing to pay a premium to be in West LA just a few months ago, the savings that leasing in Downtown can provide have since become more important as the economy slows and tenants look to cut costs.